The New Haven Fire Department will now be better equipped to help pets that have been exposed to smoke during a house fire as the department has recently acquired more than a dozen oxygen mask kits that are specifically designed for animals. The kits come with masks of three different sizes to and are specifically designed to fit a dog’s snout.

“We wanted to be able to provide this service,” Alston said. “Many persons, it doesn’t matter their age, [pets] are a member of the family.”

The New Haven Fire Department will begin training firefighters to use these oxygen mask kits by the fall, thanks to a donation from the Canine Company, a Connecticut-based company that donates animal oxygen masks to fire departments, among many other things, including providing families with pet training and care services. The Canine Company made the donation earlier this year and it was approved by the Board of Alders in May.

Getting Mayor Toni Harp on board with the idea was easy because she has two dogs herself, Alston said.

The Canine Company funds their donations through their Canine Saves campaign, according to Renee Coughlin, the director of marketing for the nonprofit. Each oxygen mask kit costs $90 and includes three masks in varying sizes, hook-ups to oxygen tanks, carry bags and instructions.

The Canine Company has donated the oxygen masks to fire departments throughout New England, New York, and New Jersey, and donated more than 120 kits in 2016 alone, according to the company.

Alston said he wanted the department to apply for a donation from the Canine Company because his former department down in Jersey City used the mask kits and he had seen them be effective.

He added that training will be done in the evenings for firefighters and every member of the department will be trained in how to use the masks.

The New Haven Fire Department does not currently keep records of how many pets are saved from house fires, but those numbers will start to be tracked, Alston said.

Mayor Toni Harp announced the addition of these mask kits to the fire department arsenal during a press conference Thursday. She said that while an animal’s instincts may save them from being burned from flames, the “silent killer” for many pets trapped in a house fire is smoke inhalation.

“In most fire departments in most states, emergency and first responders just don’t have the necessary equipment to resuscitate and save pets who’ve been exposed to excessive amounts of smoke,” Harp said.

Harp said there are no official statistics on the number of pets that die every year as a result of fires, but there are estimates that the number is between 40,000 and 150,000.

“With the addition of this new equipment in its many tool boxes, the New Haven Fire Department is now prepared to assist residents in a new way: by protecting the lives and trying to save family pets who are also cherished family members,” Harp said.